Davey Allison, left, and team owner Robert Yates were the only team to win back-to-back all-star races.

Allison's hot night in '92 one to remember by all

Driver defends all-star victory; wrecks '007' while crossing line

There was something about NASCAR's annual all-star race that got into Davey Allison's system and jolted it to a new level.

The event's no-points, win-at-all costs format tended to fire up Allison to no end, and that was a big reason behind his back-to-back victories in 1991 and 1992.

The feat has not been matched since.

2001 FLASHBACK Jeff Gordon reigned supreme on a rainy night at Lowe's Motor Speedway in May 2001, tying Dale Earnhardt with his third all-star race victory.  Gordon's win spanned nearly four hours, two days and two No. 24 Chevrolets, after NASCAR allowed drivers to use their backup cars following a rain-caused crash soon after the green flag.  •   Complete story, click here 1996 FLASHBACK For Michael Waltrip, 1996 was the perfect season. A perfectly historic season.  Ten years ago, Waltrip cracked $1 million in earnings for the first time, posted a then career-high 11 top-10 finishes and finished 14th in the Cup standings, also a career high at that time.  But nothing compares to what happened in that season's all-star race (then called the Winston Select), when Waltrip became the first -- and only -- driver to transfer from the Open race and win the weekend's main event.  •   Complete story, click here 1991 FLASHBACK There was something about NASCAR's annual all-star race that got into Davey Allison's system and jolted it to a new level.  The event's no-points, win-at-all costs format tended to fire up Allison to no end, and that was a big reason behind his back-to-back victories in 1991-92.  The feat hasn't been matched.  •   Complete story, click here 1986 FLASHBACK It was a different time, different attitude and definitely a different place -- and the year Bill Elliott returned to being Awesome again.  The only time NASCAR's mid-season all-star exhibition was held outside of North Carolina, it was home state hero Elliott who steamrolled the field to win The Winston on Mother's Day afternoon at Atlanta in 1986.  The outcome was in doubt only from the time the 10 cars took the green flag until Elliott raced past Darrell Waltrip and Dale Earnhardt in Turn 3 of the first lap.  •   Complete story, click here

The all-star race reminded Allison of his Late Model days back home in Alabama, when he would race under the lights with disregard for points or purse.

"He liked to race by the seat of your pants, and that is basically what that race is," said Liz Allison, his widow. "For Davey, what he always explained to me was he felt like it took him back to that kind of the old Friday night, Saturday night racing.

"It was either you won or you lost. He loved it."

Allison's victory in 1992 marked a major turning point for NASCAR's all-star race. It was run under the lights for the first time.

Lowe's Motor Speedway officials invested a lot of time in promoting the event, which they billed "One Hot Night."

Allison was determined to win the race. Even though it was a huge risk, Robert Yates Racing elected to use its best car, dubbed "007."

"That was what Davey wanted, and we felt like that was what we needed to give him," crew chief Larry McReynolds said.

The car was so feared that it elicited groans from competitors when RYR elected to run it. It had won at diverse tracks like Michigan and Pocono, and McReynolds was banking on the car to win the Coca-Cola 600 the following week.

A victory in the Coca-Cola 600 would have given Allison the coveted Winston Million bonus, but the team never got the chance to run its best car. It was destroyed in the all-star race when Allison wrecked it on the final lap.

McReynolds describes what happened:

"We had struggled a little bit. We were not that good. I remember when we took the white flag, I am thinking, 'We learned a lot,'" McReynolds said. "I can still remember Roman Pemberton was standing atop the toolbox, and as the cars went down the backstretch, I looked up and saw Roman turn around, I thought, 'Did he wreck?'

"Kyle and Dale [Earnhardt] had gotten together and sent each other up the racetrack, and Davey drove to the outside and took the lead coming off Turn 4. I thought we were going to win the race, and we did, but I can still see those sparks flying when they crossed the start-finish line.

"Kyle got into Davey and wrecked. It was just hard racing."

The team's beloved car was destroyed in the crash, and he failed to win the Coca-Cola 600 the following week, finishing fourth.

Allison was knocked unconscious in the crash and was airlifted to a nearby hospital for treatment, terrifying his wife, who was watching from a condo in Turn 1.

"I was with the kids, trying to prevent them from seeing anything," Liz Allison said. "I didn't know what was going on as far as the finish was concerned. By the time I got down to the infield medical center, he had already been airlifted out.

"I had to go all the way back and then had to try to get myself to the hospital with everyone leaving the racetrack. And that was a very popular race so it was very crowded.

"It took me hours to get there."

Allison's all-star victory the previous year was far more benign, as he led every lap in a caution-free event. It was the first win that Allison had with McReynolds, who had been hired as his crew chief just a few races before.

"It was my first win with Davey," McReynolds said. "It was almost scary, we beat them so bad.

"I told [team owner] Robert [Yates], 'We have got to slow him down because we have got to come back here next week and go through inspection.' "